Melwood and Linden Agree to Historic Integration

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Melwood and Linden Agree to Historic Integration

Strategic affiliation designed to create the fastest-growing job market for people with differing abilities in the Washington metropolitan area.

UPPER MARLBORO, Md., May 24, 2017— Melwood and Linden Resources (“Linden”), two leading nonprofit organizations in Maryland and Virginia have formally agreed to a historic integration, creating one of the largest nonprofit organizations in the Washington metropolitan area focused on delivering services to persons with disabilities (our preferred term is “differing abilities”).

On July 1, Linden will become an affiliate of Melwood and, together, they will become the leading provider of jobs and development opportunities for people with differing abilities in the Greater DC Metro area. The combined organization will be positioned to provide greater choices and quality services to the competitive integrated workforce arena, as well as establish a high-performing job market for people with differing abilities.

“We are excited to welcome Linden Resources into the Melwood family,” said Cari DeSantis, President & CEO of Melwood. “We have been actively considering partnerships to expand and diversify. Melwood has always had an excellent working relationship with Linden, and we both realized that our organizations share core values and missions. There’s no question the economic advantages and respective expertise of our organizations will enable us to bring long-term value to the people we serve, to our employees and to our customers in the community. Together, we are even stronger advocates for employment of people with differing abilities in the DC region.”

Melwood is a $90+ million non-profit agency established in Upper Marlboro, MD in 1963 and touted for its unique social entrepreneurial double bottom-line operations model. It’s a driving force behind job creation and independence for people with differing abilities throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia. Melwood maintains a competitive and inclusive workforce by providing a range of services to government agencies and the private sector.

Like Melwood, Linden is a non-profit, AbilityOne organization. It has been providing meaningful employment opportunities and innovative services for people with differing abilities in northern Virginia since 1959.

“The agreement marks another significant milestone in Linden’s strategic plan to remain a value-creating organization,” said Linda Chandler, CEO of Linden. “For the past year, we’ve examined our operations to determine how to ensure our trusted services continue for years to come. I believe that, by joining forces with Melwood and by leveraging our collective resources, we’ll make an even bigger impact on our community and the people we serve.”

Speaking at Linden’s annual Enriching Lives Breakfast in Arlington, VA, on Wednesday, May 17, Virginia Senator Barbara Favola (D) stated, “Linden Resources has provided work opportunities for people with disabilities in northern Virginia for almost 60 years. The exciting affiliation with Melwood will complement and expand services for those with barriers to employment.”

The affiliation is part of both organizations’ goals to become an even stronger competitive choice within the integrated workforce field. By agreeing to partner, Melwood and Linden are working toward achieving long-term growth and greater work opportunities for people with differing abilities.

The affiliated organizations will have nearly 2,000 employees, earn over $100 million in annual revenue, operate approximately 50 AbilityOne contracts and serve over 2,500 people with differing abilities each year in the Washington metropolitan area.

###

About Melwood

Melwood is an AbilityOne non-profit organization, and one of the largest employers of people with differing abilities in the Northeast U.S., with a highly competitive and inclusive workforce – providing a range of services to federal, state and local governments, and the private sector. Using an innovative and effective social entrepreneurial model, Melwood offers job placement, job training, life skills for independence, and support services to more than 2,100 people each year in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, Maryland, and Virginia. We also provide recreation opportunities through seasonal inclusive camp programs for children and adults with and without differing abilities. In addition, Melwood provides employment and support services to veterans and active duty military members coping with a variety of combat-related traumas such as PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and substance abuse. Melwood operates a training program that graduates approximately 100 workers with differing abilities each year, and currently employs more than 1,300 workers, including nearly 800 persons with differing abilities. Since 1963, the 501(3)(c) organization has envisioned a world in which people with differing abilities are fully included by advocating for and empowering them to transform their own lives through unique opportunities to work and play in the community. For more information visit www.Melwood.org.

About Linden

Linden Resources is a government and commercial solutions provider for the Federal government and Public Sector Industry, with over thirty years of experience in federal contracting under the AbilityOne program. Linden Resources provides contact centers, fulfillment and distribution, printing, document conversion and secure document destruction to government and commercial customers in order to expand employment opportunities for people with disabilities while exceeding the expectations of their customers. Linden Resources was founded in 1959 as a 501(3)(c) nonprofit to provide meaningful employment opportunities for people with disabilities. Since that time, Linden Resources has grown to employ, provide job placement and other innovative services and programs to serve each year more than 450 individuals with intellectual, physical and mental health disabilities, and wounded warrior veterans. For more information visit www.Linden.org.